Simple Questions
by mostlypsychotic
Summary: Legate Rikke asks Hadvar if he's fallen in love with the new recruit as the battle for Windhelm draws nearer. It does raise a few inner questions about what Kenina means to him.


Hadvar poked his head into the tent with a tiny bit of disdain for his situation. Being called to Rikke's tent never seemed to bode well for any of his colleagues, and he could feel his stomach turning as he studied the Legate's face. This was a man who had fought Stormcloaks, bandits, and dragons alike since joining the Imperials, and yet nothing was more intimidating by the serious look that constantly adorned her face.

"You...you wanted to see me, Legate?" he asked, stepping into the tent and letting the flap fall closed again behind him. Rikke rolled her eyes a bit at the soldier's tentative voice, and gestured at the chair on the other side of her table.

"No need to sound so _meek_, Hadvar. You're not in trouble." she said firmly. "Have a seat." Hadvar obliged, fighting a smile as he mulled over the command.

_So, she knows my name after all. Nice._

"I'll get straight to the point, then," Rikke continued, her habit of pacing as she spoke returning. "I wanted to talk to you about the Dragonborn."

"Kenina?"

"Precisely." She paused, noticing how Hadvar's shoulders had tensed and his eyes widened at the mention of the newer soldier. "She's moving up in the ranks quickly, wouldn't you say?"

"Y-yes, ma'am..."

"And as I recall, you escaped from Helgen with her, correct?"

"It's more of the other way around. I probably would have died without her," the soldier chuckled, before his face became stony again. "Is _she_ in trouble, Legate?"

"Of course not. She's an excellent addition to our ranks. She fights well, she's loyal, and she has a very..._unique_ ability, so to speak. In the little spare time that I have these days, I've been observing her interactions with her fellow soldiers, and it always seems to come back to you." She suddenly slapped her hands down on the table and looked Hadvar dead in the face, her eyes never wavering. "I want you to answer me honestly, Hadvar. Are you in love with her?"

"_What_?"

"It isn't a difficult question."

"I-I..." Hadvar blinked, clamping his hands together as he thought it through. Little, short-haired Kenina, who had looked him dead in the face as she was pushed to the chopping block in Helgen...frightened, self-conscious Kenina, who had chosen him over Ralof and hurried into the Keep with tears in her eyes. At the time, he had been equal parts relieved and surprised that she would go along with an Imperial soldier instead of a fellow prisoner, but she was a damn good warrior, and without her, that one tricky wave of Stormcloaks within the Keep probably would have killed him.

In Riverwood, she had become bashful and shy when he introduced her as his friend. He could only imagine how long it had been since anybody had been so friendly to the poor Imperial, considering her possible fugitive status, but her embarrassed greeting as she stood before his uncle was just a little endearing.

"Are you paying attention, Hadvar?"

His head snapped back up to attention as Rikke barked out the question, and he nodded quickly.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"Then you would know that I asked you a question. I'll ask again- is this hard for you to answer?" Hadvar sighed, a smile playing on his face as he closed his eyes.

"No, Legate." He had realized the exact moment, without even realizing it. Kenina had disappeared for a while after heading out to Whiterun, evidently off doing other things. She had returned to the army later, just in time to be dispatched to the shipment interception that he had been put in charge of. She had become even more skilled, she walked with a new air of confidence, and new scars adorned her face, but when she spoke to him...she was exactly the same as the girl he had escaped Helgen with. Her spirit hadn't changed.

Legate Rikke was still expecting an answer. She took in Hadvar's strangely happy expression for a moment, before moving to speak again.

"Then-"

"Yes, Legate. I am in love with her," the soldier interrupted her, smiling with just a tinge of embarrassment. Rikke raised an eyebrow, before nodding shortly.

"I see. Why is that?"

Strong, brave Kenina, coming to terms with what Skyrim held for her. That was the woman he had seen just a few days before, at Fort Kastav. She was unafraid, and she had harnessed that strange power granted to her as Dragonborn. And even then, as she fulfilled her new position as Legate and led their men forward to rescue the others, shouting orders at her own and threats at her enemies, he could _still _see that undeniable soul in her eyes.

"Because she's amazing, ma'am," he said, looking up again in the hopes that she would maybe understand. "She started out amazing, and she's becoming even more so the longer I know her. And I want to stay with her and help her reach where I know she will. If I can, I mean." His superior looked away now, focusing on the dwindling number of blue flags on her map.

"I intend to have you both fight in the battle for Windhelm. I hope you know that."

"It would be an honor, ma'am."

"If all goes as planned and neither of you die in the process, do you intend to marry her?"

"If she'll have me."

"You've gotten honest, Hadvar. I'll give you that." The Legate almost found herself smiling, but was able to hide it as usual. "Unlike some of Skyrim's women, I don't believe Kenina _needs _a husband. That said," she added quickly, as the soldier opened his mouth to protest, "she's a foreigner, and it seems to me she doesn't intend on returning home anytime soon. I believe she could benefit from having a close relationship with _somebody _around here. And you've proven yourself more than willing to take on that role for her. You have my support, whatever good that does." Hadvar grinned openly, rubbing the back of his neck and standing up again.

"Thank you, Legate," he said weakly.

"Now, go get yourself and your men prepared. The General and I intend to take Windhelm soon. Dismissed!"

Hadvar hurried from the tent again, only to find that the girl in question was seated on a rock just across the camp. It wasn't too often that she bothered to stay overnight, especially in these hectic times, but perhaps it was just coincidence. Squaring his shoulders, he crossed the small patch of grass that separated them, and took a seat at her side.

"Legate Kenina," he greeted her teasingly, earning a reproachful look from his friend.

"I told you about the formalities, Hadvar. Don't you think we're on closer terms than that by now?" she asked, smiling warmly nonetheless.

"Sorry. Perhaps you'd prefer 'Kenina, Almighty Dragonborn and Supreme Ruler-'"

"_Hadvar_." Kenina turned back to the land just beyond the trees, her eyes softening again. "Rikke told me that we'd be attacking Windhelm soon. Home of the Stormcloaks, eh?"

"You sound nervous. Letting the rebels get to your head?"

"I mean...don't be ridiculous," she grumbled, waving a hand dismissively. "It's nothing we can't handle. There's not a doubt in my mind that we'll take Windhelm. It's just...strange, I suppose. Strange that this is all what it came down to." She shook her head, rolling her eyes at her own moment of weakness and sighing loudly. Hadvar frowned, only able to wonder what she was so exasperated about, and placed a hand on her elbow, leveling her with a stern look.

"This is a big thing we're going into, Kenina. Don't take it lightly, understood? I don't want you going in there, thinking this is just some Stormcloak skirmish. That kind of thinking is going to get you _killed_, whether you think so or not."

Kenina blinked, not accustomed to hearing her friend speak that passionately about anything. She turned back to him, eyes wide, and nodded quickly.

"Of...of course. I'm sorry," she said anxiously, softening her fellow soldier again.  
"Glad to hear it," he said firmly, his shoulders relaxing again. "I've heard something around twenty rumors about you dying, you know. I don't want this to be the time when you actually _do _die."

"It won't be. And I expect to see you alive when it's all done with."

"You will." Hadvar chuckled a little, the words bubbling up behind his lips at long last. After all, neither of them _knew _that they could keep those promises, even if they both wanted to. But now, darkness was falling over the camp, and as they say, there's no time like the present.

"You know, I love you," he said gently, smiling over at her. In the dim lights, he was almost sure he saw the Dragonborn, of all people, blushing, but she merely laughed and stretched her legs.

"Didn't I tell you we're both going to live? What, are you worried you won't get to tell me or something?" She stood, reaching her arms above her head and keeping her gaze away from Hadvar. "...We ought to get some sleep. I'm going to go find a tent. Goodnight, Hadvar." As she turned and passed the rock that the man remained on, her shoulders slumped a bit, and she sighed. "...Oi. I love you, too. But don't let that get to your head."

"Of course not," Hadvar replied, though he couldn't hide the smile as he focused on the land in front of him.


End file.
